“About six people do our bulletin board,” he says. “They take the flyers that we get for events and clubs and translate them into slides that we show. There are also 10 to 15 people who work in the TV studio and about four who work in the video room of the performing arts center when events are going on there. They do different types of jobs like camera work, audio, graphics, and so forth.”
Then there are those who go in front of the camera.
There is a five-person roundtable called The Mountain View Conversations, in which the resident host interviews another resident “Charlie Rose-style”; and In the Spotlight, in which the two resident hosts focus on different people they find interesting or humorous. “They go more on the humor side and that’s been popular,” says Andrew. “People actually set up chairs to watch on TV in the lobby.”
Staff members also have their programs. Peter Cataldi, Cedar Crest’s wellness manager and also the TV studio manager, has a program called Stretch and Tone, which is popular among people who exercise in their home. And Kristin DiFidi of community resources and Tori Heimall of dining services have Cedar Crest Today and Weekend at Cedar Crest, which tells people what’s coming up in the way of events, trips, club activities, and dining services.
New TV Network Expands the Vision
While Erickson has been bringing relevant programming to the people who live at its communities for years, it is now extending this mission beyond its campuses. This month it is launching the Retirement Living Network (see story on front page).
In a recent questionnaire sent to Erickson Tribune readers, virtually all of the 10,000 plus people who responded indicated that they were unsatisfied with the TV programming currently offered to them. With the tagline “TV Finally Grows Up,” the Retirement Living Network aims to fill this acute need for programming specifically geared to older adults.
Planned programs include The Art of Living, highlighting the extraordinary lives of ordinary older adults; Healthline, a live call-in show; The Voice, in which issues important to retirees are discussed before live audiences; and programs on personal finance, travel, cooking, and fitness.
Initially, programs will air on Comcast stations in the Mid-Atlantic and New England markets. The network’s ultimate goal, however, is to roll out nationwide with its own Retirement Living Channel. With over 40 million older television viewers, the Retirement Living Network promises to reach a large and thus-far underserved audience.
“We see every day in Erickson-built and -managed communities what a great impact on the lives of people it can have to change the way they perceive aging,” says Patrick Baldwin, the senior director of TV and media. “That’s what we’re trying to do with this new network, to bring the message that you’re empowered to control your entire life.”